CEO Dennis Nelson was paid $11,706,282 in fiscal year 2025, ↑ up 32.8% from fiscal year 2024 (SEC filing 0000885245-26-000016 ↗): executive and director compensation, incentive-plan design, equity activity, and governance — every figure in this brief is traceable to its exact location in the company’s SEC filing — the document, the section, the page, and the table, linked directly.
$11,706,282 ↑ Dennis Nelson total, FY2025 | — CEO pay percentile vs peers | — CEO-to-median pay ratio | 96.59% Say-on-pay support, latest vote |
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BKE's next annual pay disclosure, estimated April 21, 2027.est. Filing ↗
| Named executive officer | Salary | Bonus | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Pension / NQDC | All other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dennis Nelson | $1,300,000 | $4,503,597 | $5,713,200 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $189,485 | $11,706,282 |
| President and CEO | ||||||||
| Kari Smith | 690,000 | 1,156,329 | 942,678 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48,135 | 2,837,142 |
| Executive Vice President of Stores | ||||||||
| Brett Milkie | 670,000 | 1,065,040 | 876,024 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 46,229 | 2,657,293 |
| Senior Vice President of Leasing | ||||||||
| Thomas Heacock | 635,000 | 1,065,040 | 876,024 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 66,226 | 2,642,290 |
| Senior Vice President of Finance and CFO | ||||||||
| Michelle Hoffman | 494,000 | 882,462 | 666,540 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38,464 | 2,081,466 |
| Senior Vice President of Sales | ||||||||
A dash means the company reported no figure in that column; 0 means it reported zero. Figures are as printed in the filing, without adjustment.
| Named executive officer | FY2025 total | FY2024 total | FY2023 total | Δ FY2024→2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dennis Nelson | $11,706,282 | $8,817,953 | $9,825,399 | ↑ +2,888,329 |
| Kari Smith | 2,837,142 | 2,173,975 | 2,344,260 | ↑ +663,167 |
| Brett Milkie | 2,657,293 | 2,042,399 | 2,185,125 | ↑ +614,894 |
| Thomas Heacock | 2,642,290 | 2,034,829 | 2,181,648 | ↑ +607,461 |
| Michelle Hoffman | 2,081,466 | 1,586,933 | — | ↑ +494,533 |
Prior-year totals as disclosed in the corresponding proxy; deltas are computed values with the derivation shown in the register.
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Each company listed discloses BKE in its own benchmarking peer group, as disclosed in each company's most recent proxy statement within the last two proxy seasons. Two companies are therefore absent by design: one that named BKE in an earlier year and no longer does, and one whose own most recent disclosure is older than the last two seasons.
One page per officer: the same table above, read for one person at a time — his own figure and every fiscal year the register holds.
| Executive | Role | FY2025 total |
|---|---|---|
| Brett Milkie | SVP | $2,657,293 |
| Dennis Nelson | CEO | $11,706,282 |
| Kari Smith | EVP | $2,837,142 |
| Michelle Hoffman | SVP | $2,081,466 |
| Thomas Heacock | CFO | $2,642,290 |
One page per director: the seat, the committees and the fee table, read for one person at a time.
| Director | Role | FY2025 total |
|---|---|---|
| Angie J. Klein | Independent Director | $153,455 |
| Bill L. Fairfield | Independent Director | $145,455 |
| Bruce L. Hoberman | Independent Director | $145,455 |
| Daniel J. Hirschfeld | Chair of the Board | — |
| Hank M. Bounds | Independent Director | $145,455 |
| James E. Shada | Independent Director | $145,455 |
| John P. Peetz III | Independent Director | $157,455 |
| Karen B. Rhoads | Independent Director | $145,455 |
| Michael E. Huss | Independent Director | $161,455 |
| Shruti S. Joshi | Independent Director | $145,455 |
No insider equity transactions reported since the proxy statement.
| Executive | Award | Shares unvested | Exercise price | Market value unvested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dennis Nelson | RSU | 226,000 | — | $10,759,860 |
| Kari Smith | RSU | 37,060 | — | 1,764,427 |
| Thomas Heacock | RSU | 34,480 | — | 1,641,593 |
| Brett Milkie | RSU | 34,480 | — | 1,641,593 |
| Michelle Hoffman | RSU | 26,200 | — | 1,247,382 |
The Company's compensation philosophy is that each member in a position to make the Company succeed should be rewarded accordingly for success and, as such, the compensation plan is intended to provide a relationship between the compensation earned by executive officers and the creation of value for stockholders.
| CEO STI target (% of salary) | — |
|---|---|
| CEO LTI target (% of salary) | — |
| Independent consultant | — |
| Clawback policy | true |
| Anti-hedging | true |
| Anti-pledging | — |
| Meeting year | Meeting date | For | Against | Abstain | Support | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2026-06-01 | 42,971,864 | 1,516,777 | 116,687 | 96.59% | Passed |
Rows are labeled by annual-meeting year, with the meeting date beside each; the vote held in a given year acts on the prior fiscal year's compensation.
| Meeting year | Meeting date | Approval — company's computation |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2026-06-01 | 96.59%a |
a. Approved under the standard stated in the filing — “Abstentions and broker non-votes will not be counted as votes cast in determining the number of votes required for approval.”.
Approval percentages are the company's own reported computations under its own stated standard, not recomputed by Velarion. Where a company does not state a standard, none is assumed.
| Director | Cash fees | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | All other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael E. HussIndependent · Audit Committee (Chair) | $76,000 | $85,455 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $161,455 |
| John P. Peetz IIIIndependent · Compensation (Chair) | 72,000 | 85,455 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 157,455 |
| Angie J. KleinIndependent · Nominating, Governance, and Corporate Social Responsibility Committee (Chair) | 68,000 | 85,455 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 153,455 |
| James E. ShadaIndependent · Audit Committee · Nominating, Governance, and Corporate Social Responsibility Committee | 60,000 | 85,455 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 145,455 |
| Shruti S. JoshiIndependent · Audit Committee · Nominating, Governance, and Corporate Social Responsibility Committee | 60,000 | 85,455 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 145,455 |
| Karen B. RhoadsIndependent | 60,000 | 85,455 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 145,455 |
| Bruce L. HobermanIndependent · Compensation Committee · Nominating, Governance, and Corporate Social Responsibility Committee | 60,000 | 85,455 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 145,455 |
| Hank M. BoundsIndependent · Audit Committee · Compensation Committee | 60,000 | 85,455 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 145,455 |
| Bill L. FairfieldIndependent · Audit Committee · Compensation Committee | 60,000 | 85,455 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 145,455 |
| Dennis H. NelsonEmployee director · Executive | — | — | — | — | — | 0 |
| Kari G. SmithEmployee director · Executive | — | — | — | — | — | 0 |
| Thomas B. HeacockEmployee director · Executive | — | — | — | — | — | 0 |
| Daniel J. HirschfeldEmployee director · Board Chair · Executive | — | — | — | — | — | 0 |
| Annual cash retainer | — |
|---|---|
| Annual equity retainer | — |
| Per board meeting fee | — |
| Committee chair fees (audit / comp / nom-gov) | — |
| Stock ownership guideline | $10,000 |
| Component | FY2025 |
|---|---|
| Cash retainers and fees | $576,000 |
| Equity awards (grant-date value) | $769,095 |
| All other compensation | $0 |
| Total cost of the board | $1,345,095 |
Computed as the sum of the director compensation table rows above; inputs and formula shown in the register.
Most recent fiscal-year chief executive compensation at each disclosed peer, taken from that company's own proxy statement.
| Rank | Company | FY | Chief executive | Salary | Stock awards | Option awards | Non-equity incentive | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Buckle | 2025 | Dennis Nelson | $1,300,000 | $5,713,200 | $0 | $0 | $11,706,282 |
Each peer's compensation is from its most recently filed proxy; fiscal years differ by company. Each peer's figures come from its own filings; the subject company is highlighted. Peers whose chief executive compensation is outside our coverage universe are stated as such, never left blank.
Answers are drawn only from the figures disclosed in this brief and cited to their location in the source filing. Where a figure required for an answer is not disclosed, that is stated rather than estimated.
Each figure is listed with the filing it comes from, where it appears in that filing, and the value as printed. Any figure can be independently confirmed against the source.
| # | Supports | Document | Filed | Accession | Location in document |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Section 01, Dennis Nelson | DEF 14A | 2026-04-22 | 0000885245-26-000016 | Section “Executive Compensation”. As printed: 11,706,282. View filing ↗ |
| 2 | Section 01, Kari Smith | DEF 14A | 2026-04-22 | 0000885245-26-000016 | Section “Executive Compensation”. As printed: 2,837,142. View filing ↗ |
| 3 | Section 01, Brett Milkie | DEF 14A | 2026-04-22 | 0000885245-26-000016 | Section “Executive Compensation”. As printed: 2,657,293. View filing ↗ |
| 4 | Section 01, Thomas Heacock | DEF 14A | 2026-04-22 | 0000885245-26-000016 | Section “Executive Compensation”. As printed: 2,642,290. View filing ↗ |
| 5 | Section 01, Michelle Hoffman | DEF 14A | 2026-04-22 | 0000885245-26-000016 | Section “Executive Compensation”. As printed: 2,081,466. View filing ↗ |
| 6 | Section 08, Michael E. Huss | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 161,455. View filing ↗ |
| 7 | Section 08, John P. Peetz III | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 157,455. View filing ↗ |
| 8 | Section 08, Angie J. Klein | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 153,455. View filing ↗ |
| 9 | Section 08, James E. Shada | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 145,455. View filing ↗ |
| 10 | Section 08, Shruti S. Joshi | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 145,455. View filing ↗ |
| 11 | Section 08, Karen B. Rhoads | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 145,455. View filing ↗ |
| 12 | Section 08, Bruce L. Hoberman | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 145,455. View filing ↗ |
| 13 | Section 08, Hank M. Bounds | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 145,455. View filing ↗ |
| 14 | Section 08, Bill L. Fairfield | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 145,455. View filing ↗ |
| 15 | Section 08, Dennis H. Nelson | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. View filing ↗ |
| 16 | Section 08, Kari G. Smith | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. View filing ↗ |
| 17 | Section 08, Thomas B. Heacock | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. View filing ↗ |
| 18 | Section 08, Daniel J. Hirschfeld | DEF 14A | 2025-04-23 | 0000885245-25-000058 | Section “Director Compensation”. As printed: 0. View filing ↗ |
| 19 | Section 06, 2026 vote | Form 8-K | 2026-06-02 | 0000885245-26-000027 | Item 5.07 · say-on-pay result. As reported: 96.59% (votes for as printed: 42,971,864). View filing ↗ |
| 20 | Section 01 trend, Δ column (computed) | Computed | — | — | Δ = current-FY total − prior-FY total per named officer. |
| 21 | Section 09b board cost (computed) | Computed | — | — | Cash 576,000 + equity 769,095 + all other 0 = 1,345,095, summed across the director compensation table rows. |
| 22 | Buckle (subject), Section 10b CEO total | DEF 14A | 2026-04-22 | 0000885245-26-000016 | CEO total compensation as printed in Buckle's own proxy. As printed: 11,706,282. View filing ↗ |